Ravenpaw and Barley
by Starblaze and Adderstar
Summary: Ravenpaw knows what he's feeling, but he's scared. He is as scared of death, as he is love.
1. Love can be War

So like... I found the edit button on the documents. Wee. (I'm getting a kitten. :3)

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><p>I had been thinking, for the longest time. '<em>Ravenpaw, you need to be a warrior and fight this battle!<em>" I did fight. I fought as hard as I could to control myself and remain calm around him. Then, after moons of clawing at myself from the inside of my heart, I realized it wasn't a battle at all. _I'm in _love_, not war._

"Barley." I prodded the long-haired tom's side. He let out a groan of protest and rolled over to face me.  
>"Morning." He mumbled. I offered a smile as he stretched his legs. "You look like you've been busy." He meowed a little louder, pointing to the two plump squirrels on the ground next to us.<br>"Yeah." I replied self-consiously. He purred and grabbed one to bite into.  
>"Thanks." Barley stretched out in the patch of sun to fill his tummy. I sat eating my squirrel, occasionally stealing glances at him.<br>"Barley." I began, not realizing I was speaking. The black and white tom looked up from his squirrel. "Yes, Ravenpaw?" He asked.  
>I snapped back to reality. My mouth wanted badly to form the words 'I love you.' But I fought it. "Nothing. Never mind."<p>

"Really, what is it?" _Why does he have to be so concerned. It's cute_. I looked down awkwardly at my prey.  
>"Nothing. I just wanted to know if you ever loved anyone..." I lied. I lied, and asked an obvious, stupid question at the same time. <em>I'm the stupidest cat on the planet.<em>  
>Barley nodded and looked past me at some far away memory that he seemed quite fond of. A chill ran up my spine, w<em>ould he ever be able to love me if he loved some she-cat...?<em>  
>"Yes. I loved a cat. A long time ago, but this cat was over taken with evil. I loved this cat when there was no evil in it. It changed too much, though. I feared for my life around this cat. So I fled." <em>Why does he keep saying 'This cat' and 'it'? Was it a tom?<em> Hope flared up in my chest like a wildfire.  
>"What was the cat's name?" I asked quietly, secretly scared of the answer. Barley looked me in the eye for a moment and turned his head away. He took in a deep, shaky breath. The only thing I wanted to do was curl up around him and tell him not to think of the past. He has someone who loves him right here.<br>"Scourge." The tom muttered. My eyes widened in shock. There was no way he loved S_courge, _no way in all hell.  
>"The Scourge that killed Tigerstar?" I couldn't help but ask.<br>Barley nodded solemly. He got up and padded out of the barn. I tried, but I could not move. Instead of confusion or sympathy, my chest filled itself with rage. '_He can love an evil, ambitious, treacherous, _tom_. But not me?_' Thoughts like this pulsed through my mind for what seemed like moons. Until sundown. I noticed that Barley had not returned.

All thoughts of rage or hatred emptied out of me like nothing. "Barley?" I called in alarm. '_What if something's happened?'_ I panicked. I ran out of the barn and opened my mouth letting all the scents flood into my nose. Only one caught my attention;  
>Blood. <em>Barley's<em> blood.

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><p>This was fun! Me and Addi are getting a little kitten! I want to name it something cute but he wants to name it something morbid. -_-'<p> 


	2. Hearts Bleed

So. I updated. Woop. My first chapter story and it's doing quite well. I'm _pleased_ with the blood I got to put in. Starblaze hates me for it though x) '**Aw a cute love story!**' (Scoff) No bloody, gory love story. (:

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><p><em>Why? Why would I say something so stupid? Look where it got me<em>. I looked out around me. I was in Windclan's old territory. I was bleeding and I couldn't move. '_Barley, walk it off. Don't be a pansy._' Still, I couldn't bring myself to move. I begged silently '_Please, legs! Work!_' I stopped writhing and yelping because I had lost the will to be saved. '_I deserve it_', I finally concluded. _I broke my only friendship._  
>Sleep seeped in around me. I closed my eyes, thinking I would never wake up again. A sting in my heart felt like a deep scratch that I couldn't stop from bleeding. <em>So, hearts can bleed.<em> It whispered to me. It whispered the name of the tom I had come to love. **_Ravenpaw._**

"Barley... How could I have let you run away? I shouldn't have been angry." I whimpered over the tom's mangled body. A fox trap was deep in his hind leg. _'I love you. Wake up I love you!_' I wanted to scream so badly. "You can't go yet. There's still something I need to tell you..." I whispered quietly in his ear. He stirred. Barley turned his head to face me. My face split into a wide grin, tears still streaming down my face. "You're okay." I purred lightly.  
>"What did you need to tell me, Ravenpaw? Because I have something to tell you as well." He winced in pain at his leg when he was looking at the trap.<br>"Don't look, I'll fix this. Just don't look, because no matter how much it hurts, I'm here, okay? I'll always be here..." I paused and licked Barley between the ears, "... because _I love you_."  
>Barley looked at me with soft eyes. "I love you too." He whispered. I felt my heart skip for what seemed like a moon. <em>Why did I fight it? It's not fair, he has to die. Why did I wait so long...<em>

Then it hit me. _There was no way in all Starclan or hell that I was letting my sweet Barley slip away._  
>"Barley. You need to wake up and stand up." I said in a demanding, but soft, tone.<br>The tom looked up at me in suprise. "I** can't**, bossypelt." He hissed lightly.  
>I tensed. "You have to!" I yowled out of fear. "We have an entire life time in front of us! If you die where am I going to go?" Barley let a tear slip out of his beautiful amber eyes. "Fine." He shifted his body weight to his front paws to prop himself up. I offered a smile. "Let me get the trap out of the ground, okay?" I licked his ear. He nodded and closed his eyes. I sighed and padded to the spike holding the trap in the ground. I took the spike in my mouth and yanked as hard as I could. "Ow!" Barley yelped. I winced at the noise and opened my eyes. The spike was out. "Now stand on your good hind leg." I pushed into him for support. He purred as out pelt connected. "Thank you." He winced. I licked his muzzle to say '<em>Don't thank me. just move.'<em>

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><p>The end~~ I'll update after 2 reviews. Don't read the top. Just don't! I'm still way mad at<em> Mr. Poe reincarnate<em> over there.


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